The Zombie Apocalypse with MCR (Complete)

Warm Welcome

The car is more full than I intended it to be.

I knew trying to stop Frank would be more hassle than it was worth. Better to pack a bag for him and a bag for me and start driving.

When I trudged into the kitchen on the evening of the day I died to announce I was leaving, there was unexpected uproar.

"So today I watched you die and tomorrow I'll watch you leave?" Nat exclaimed, liked I'd gutted her with a rusty knife.

"What if it's dangerous? What if you never come back?" Gerard had demanded, "We're to live forever and not know?"

"What would we do without you?" Mikey had frowned, "We couldn't fend for ourselves."

Frank hadn't been very happy with that reasoning, but it was a fair point.

After a long, teary discussion (on Gerard's end, anyway) it was decided I wouldn't be going anywhere alone.

"Besides," Ray had given me a tight smile, "Frank has to keep you out of trouble. And we have to keep him out of trouble."

Frank had insisted that I get some sleep - we could leave tomorrow, and he'd steered me from the kitchen and into his bedroom. As he bandaged my new wounds and bundled me into bed, Ray's words lingered in the depths of my brain.

If Frank hadn't fallen in love with me, if he wasn't tied to me so completely - would they feel the same?

Would I be free to go? To set off and leave them? They'd be sad, sure, but I'm good at arguing, and I would have worn them down eventually.

As I'd drifted into a stupor, I heard the quiet click of a door.

"Frank?" A hiss in the dark, and I recognised Gerard's voice.

The bed shifted, and a moment later, Frank's murmur across the room; "You okay?"

"Listen, man-" A shallow breath, "We think you should sleep separately. You can share with one of us, or in the living room, but it's best you don't sleep beside her-"

"Absolutely not, Gerard."

"Frank, you have to be reasonable here. We don't know what's happened to Nevaeh, but we can't risk it happening to you as well. She's asleep now, she won't even miss you."

"She has nightmares," Frank whispered furiously, "And she's frightened enough as it is. I can't flinch away from her, Gerard, she'll never fucking forgive me for it."

I'd kept my eyes closed and my breathing even. If Frank went with Gerard, I'd live with it. I would forgive him and I wouldn't blame him.

"I know you love her, I love her too, but we have to be practical. We don't know that she's not infected. You've already pushed it too far by having sex, by being so close - please, please come with me to limit the risk."

"Get your foot out of my doorway, Gerard."

It had taken a while for Frank to climb back into bed. Even if he hadn't gone with Gerard, he hadn't wriggled in close. He kept himself on the other side of the mattress, and I slept uneasily.

Packing was a quiet affair the next morning.

And... Things had changed.

Pandora wouldn't come near me. She didn't bark, nor did she lunge, but she kept her distance and growled the first time I tried to scratch her ears. Nat's eyes had filled with tears, and she kept Pandora close to her hip after that.

As I threw a duffle bag into the boot in the bright sunshine of mid-morning, Gerard heaved a box into the boot at the same time. His forearm brushed my hand, and his whole body had wrenched away from me.